American Dragon: The Next Generation
by The-Suburban-Guy
Summary: This story is Jake's autobiography about halfway through his life. It discusses his growth and change from a young teen to age 44, detailing his romances, aspirations, and battles along the way.
1. Introduction

This story is my story. The story of how my life became what it is today. I guess it makes sense that I write it down eventually, after all, being the first American Dragon isn't something to take lightly. My name is Jacob Luke Long. I am 44 years old and this is my life so far.

Most of my early childhood was remarkably average. Mom never told me of my powers, and Dad never knew to let me know. By the time my sister Haley was born I had figured we were just another average family. Mom, Dad, two kids. Normal.

I went to school, made friends with Trixie and Spud, did my homework (albeit often poorly), and had fun whenever I could. When I turned thirteen my dragon side started to become apparent and my mother confessed my heritage. With my grandfather training me I had much success in my early battles, but often struggled keeping everything together. The first year was difficult, but the second was hell. Eighth grade was the worst year of my life. If it wasn't for Trixie and Spud at school, and Fu and Grandpa at home, I don't know what would have happened.

Defeating the Huntsclan only to lose the love of my life, then to have to face the dark dragon all within a few months-coupled with the stress of adolescent hormones and my insane principal, it sucked. By the time we had finally finished the insanity that was the battle with the dark dragon I was on the verge of collapse.

I knew I had been trained and prepared for greatness, but I honestly never wanted to fight again after that night. All I wanted to do was curl into a ball and sleep until I graduated high school, then flee to the middle of nowhere where I could live without having to protect everyone-let someone else do the saving for once. But I knew that wouldn't work, and besides, despite the exhaustion, I did actually like saving people.

After the temple vanished and Rose confessed how she remembered, I managed to pull her aside for a few minutes and get her phone number and email. Even though I wasn't going to be in Hong Kong forever, I could at least try to enjoy a few days with her before we had to go back. Plus, I figured, maybe I could keep in touch with her-my parents still kept in touch while they were in college, and they lived in different states, why couldn't it work when Rose and I lived in different countries?

The next morning after the battle my Mom explained in more detail how the magic world worked and how dragons fit into everything for my Dad. For a minute he was silent, then he seemed to burst into a million questions all at once.

"So, let me get this straight. You all are magical, fire breathing dragons-and you protect the magical world-which has basically every creature and monster from folklore-from evil."

"Pretty much, only not me specifically, because it skipped my generation." Mom replied.

"Right, I forgot about that." He paused, "So, this is why you kids seem to sneak out all the time on school nights. And why Jake's nutso principal thought there was a dragon at his school. You were the dragon, weren't you?"

I smiled, "Guilty as charged."

"Well you could have told me this sooner! I love all that magic and medieval stuff. For pity's sakes, Susan I was dungeonmastering three different D&D groups when we were going out!" Dad stammered, a bit offended.

"Yes, but knowing that your girlfriend is one of the monsters in that doorstop of a compendium-and that your future kids would be-might not have been something to guarantee us staying together."

"Sue, I love you for who you are. Not for what you look like-or what our kids would end up as. Regardless of this, I still love you all. But you better fill me in on some details, because I really need to know about how the whole 'secret magical world' thing works! Is it like Harry Potter?"

It probably took us an hour to explain everything, during which time he never seemed prouder of Haley and I.

He knows pretty much everything now, having inherited Grandpa's vast store of magical books after he moved in with them. Most of the time he's in the basement reading and compiling data onto yet another terabyte hard drive, Fu helping translate and explain as much as he can. It's kind of funny, actually, my Dad never knew about the magic world growing up, but he knows more than me now about most things.


	2. A Battle with Pandarus

Rose and I met up a few times, her parents warming to me when she explained that I had gone to her old school and was only joking about the whole "dragon slayer" thing. They didn't fully believe it, but given that she had never been a Huntsclan member in our current world, there was no reason to try to explain the confusing timeline changes. Her sister Lily seemed nice enough, but we only ever talked briefly while I was in Hong Kong. Most of the time while we were there it was Rose and I meeting up alone to do something.

After we had to leave to return to the US Rose and I started using email and video chat programs to talk. At the time Skype wasn't popular or fast, so we usually emailed more than video called. We talked about everything: books, movies, TV shows, our families, friends… More than once we talked about how things were the same, but different in this new world. Since the Huntsclan had been destroyed and the dark dragon was sealed away until long after we were dead I had a lot less battles in high school than I ever did in middle school.

That isn't to say, though, that things weren't rough. I still had to deal with my fair share of scrapes and scars. The worst would have to be from Pandarus. After the magic world had settled from the end of the Huntsclan and the imprisonment of the dark dragon a power vacuum emerged for a top villain. Eli Pandarus stepped up.

Pandarus decided that he was going to use his magic to try to control both the human realm and the magic realm. He decided to do this by attempting to amplify his powers using an ancient orb that Merlin had crafted-the balocraeft hwyrfling. This orb was designed to work as a battery, storing up magic for a user over a period of time, then being able to be used to recharge a wizard in times of weakness or need. However, the orb could also be corrupted for evil, as it could be used to suck the power of other wizards and bestow their magic onto a single vessel-a supreme wizard of sorts.

To do this he needed to acquire the orb and then build a powerful enough device to siphon the magic from those around him so that he could use their power for his own. I go into more detail about the specifics on this in my writings on the topic-which Dad helped organize and collect onto his ever growing collection of digital magic files.

Mercifully, I was able to stop him before his device was successful. However, when we were in battle I had noticed something interesting. When a being with supernatural or magical power neared the device you could see their magic lifting from them-almost like it sucked out their chi. Obviously Grandpa and I saw ours being pulled in, but Spud also had a line being drawn from him-as if he had some magic abilities. When we destroyed the orb the powers returned to their original vessels, with the exception of Pandarus-for some reason his magic had been corrupted by the orb, leaving him unable to do anything more harmful than parlor tricks.

When the battle ended I checked with Grandpa to see if he had seen the stream coming off of Spud.

"Hey Gramps." I said, pulling him aside. "Did you see how that thing tried to suck out our powers?"

"Yes, its power was great, but now thanks to our efforts it has been destroyed."

"Pity too," Fu interjected, "That thing would've helped me pay back most of losses from last poker night with Big Ernie."

"Fu Dog! Ai yah! How many times have I told you to stop playing poker!" Grandpa yelled, angrily remembering how Fu had almost lost the shop due to a particularly bad hand a few months ago.

"Anyway," I stepped between them, "Did any of y'all notice how Spud had an aura of his own being pulled toward that thing?"

I looked over at Spud. At the moment he was goofing around with Trixie as the magical police were escorting out Pandarus. He accidentally tripped over a rock and face planted right in front of Trixie.

"I'm okay!" He shouted from across the cavern.

"Yes, I did. Perhaps we should see if he does have magical abilities. Fu, do some digging to see if he has any magic in his family. Perhaps young Arthur is more powerful than he knows."


	3. Aspirations

After some research in his family trees, Fu discovered that the Spudinskis were in fact descended from a line of wizards-albeit one thought to have lost its magic long ago after countless generations of non-magic user offspring. It seems that somehow Spud had managed to avoid this and had an actual magical essence in him.

When we told him he took it about as well as we had expected-though he half wished he could go to Hogwarts.

"So, I'm a wizard?"

"Technically kid you're nothing at the moment. Once you start training, then you're an apprentice. Then, depending on your skills-and whether the boss likes you-you'll end up a sorcerer, wizard, or warlock." Fu explained.

"I get to have magic training! Oh my God! Do I get to go to Hogwarts?"

"No, young one. Hogwarts isn't a real thing. Most wizards live in the human world these days-and therefore, there are no wizard only schools in existence." Grandpa explained.

Spud seemed a bit disappointed in that fact, but excited that he got to learn magic.

"I can't wait to show off my new skills at school. Imagine Stacy seeing me fly across the hall to kiss her…"

"Nuh-uh. Magic is magic. No mortals can know unless it's absolutely necessary. And even then…" Fu responded.

"Fine!" He sighed. "But, like, what about my parents?"

"Believe me, it sucks having to lie to your parents about a double life. But for the time being, hold off. Wait and see how it goes with the training, then maybe ease them into it." I replied, knowing how much it hurts to not be able to tell your whole life because of some stupid ancient code.

Spud started apprenticeship under a local wizard shortly afterward, and had managed to hone most of his basic powers by the time we were finishing junior year in high school.

I had, meanwhile, managed to build up my relationship with Rose over the past three years. I eventually worked up the nerve to ask her if she would like to visit me over summer break of junior year and she accepted.

"Really! I thought you'd be busy or something, because, y'know its like, 'I can't just come halfway across the world to see you when you want' or something."

"Jake, you know I love you, why would it matter if it's a bit far to visit. I've been waiting three years for you to ask me. I thought you were the one who didn't want to see me."

We both laughed, then talked a bit more about specifics. Eventually it got late and I saw that I only had a few hours until school started.

"I can't wait. Love you!" I signed off.

When she visited it felt like we were never apart all those years. Memories washed over me as we walked the familiar streets of an alternate life we had spent together. Eventually the topic settled on college, and what we were doing with the rest of our lives.

"So, what is the great American dragon going to be doing after he graduates high school?" Rose held up her ice cream like a microphone. She'd always been interested in journalism, but with the new life she had, she'd actually had the time to pursue the dreams she had been hiding under the Huntsclan.

"I don't know. Probably go to some business school and get a degree in accounting, like Dad." I winced. Dad had always done well enough at work, but I saw how bored he got and how stressed he ended up at the end of the year. There had been times when I woke up on a Saturday morning and found him asleep at the table, surrounded by a pile of spreadsheets and budget outlines.

"Really, I figured you'd end up doing your own thing." She frowned slightly, but quickly dismissed it. When she did this I decided to confess.

"Rose I've never really even thought about life outside of school. Y'know, being the American dragon is like, my thing. With all the shit I have to do with that, it's like-well, I don't know. I know I have to go to college somewhere… But it's like…" I hesitated.

"Go ahead, I promise I won't tell anyone else if you don't want me to." She reassured me.

"I kind of want to leave New York." I sighed. "No, I definitely want to leave. All these years, the shit I've had to put up with. The sacrifices I've made… don't get me wrong, I love helping others, but its like-I don't want to do this forever. I know I'm the American dragon, but I'm also 17! I should be able to do my own thing every once in a while. Things aren't as nuts as they were when the Huntsclan was around, but fuck me if I'm not out once a week fighting something that just wants to kill me! Look at this," I pointed at a fresh scar on my arm. "This is because some bastard decided he didn't want me to interrupt his black market shipment of unicorn horn. This is the thanks I get for YEARS of service. I just want to leave New York and go somewhere else where I can still be a dragon, but not THE dragon."

I put my head in my hands and moaned. Rose was quiet as she sat down next to me and wrapped her arm around me, "Jake, Haley has been training for almost as long as you have, and she can likely take care of anything major if you leave-provided your grandfather is around to help her. If you go to college somewhere else it won't mean the end of the world-you can still fly to New York as fast as an airplane, as long as you're close enough it won't be an issue." I was glad that Rose understood. She had always encouraged me to follow my heart and to do what I wanted to do. Haley could manage New York and I could manage wherever I ended up. I smiled. She always knows what to say.


	4. College Prep

My senior year was what I would consider almost normal for a high school student. The magic world still had its issues, but with easier classes and a future ahead where I could have a bit more freedom I was feeling great. My test scores, however, were not. I had taken the SATs each year in school. Regardless of what prep course, book, or online service I used I never seemed to get much better. I never scored poorly, but never good enough to get into high quality schools-especially the competitive ones I had considered my top choices. With my rejection letters mounting I was getting stressed, until eventually an envelope came in the mail from my safety school. They, at least, had accepted me.

Not that Stilton U isn't a good college-its fine-but it wasn't (and still isn't) a prestigious institution. However, it was well enough known that I could still likely get a job upon graduation, and tuition was manageable, so I accepted. Rose ended up nearby, only at a much better college on the other side of Philadelphia. She surprised me with the news shortly after I told her where I was going.

It was a Tuesday night when we were chatting over Skype and she brought it up.

"So, you officially signed on for Stilton?"

"Yeah." I rolled my eyes. "Not that it isn't a great school-I mean, it isn't-but I wished I had gotten into a few other places so I could at least have some more options. Stilton was my safety school."

"Well, don't make it sound so bad. At least you got in. Plus they have your major-not too late to get out of accounting. And I'll be close too…" She smiled, waiting to see if I had heard the last part.

"Look, accounting is fine, but-wait. Did you say you were close by?" I stammered.

"Yup. Pell took me." She smiled.

"You got into Pell!?" I almost screamed. "I thought you said you were waitlisted?"

"I was. Someone got in but decided to go somewhere else, so I got their slot."

"That's amazing! I'm dating a girl going to an Ivy League school-you really are out of my league." I laughed.

She rolled her eyes, "You know, with us so close we can see each other whenever we want. I looked at the subway system and it seems like we can just take one train with a transfer at City Hall to meet each other."

"Or I could just fly over and pick you up."

"Or that…"

After making sure she wasn't sacrificing her standards just to be close to me-given that Pell was only one of three Ivy League schools Rose had gotten into-I joined in her excitement. For the first time in ages Rose and I would be able to see each other on a regular basis!

August couldn't come soon enough. It would be difficult not being close to my friends, but thankfully we weren't too far apart. Spud had decided to focus more on his magic than college, so he ended up taking an entry position in a magic alchemy store, while Trixie decided to join the Air Force like her father and ended up stationed at the McGuire Base in Jersey working in their hospital. I was counting down the days until I moved into my dorm and could take a short subway ride (with City Hall transfer) to meet Rose.

Stilton decided that freshmen were the first to move in-and given that mainly freshmen lived in the dorms it ended up with me and about 6,000 other confused kids dragging our parents around campus to find the right building. My dorm was a squat brick building from the 1960s. I had expected to be in a nicer location-given that the brochure had mainly used pictures of the newly built skyscraper dorm across campus. However, I wasn't one to complain about getting my own room away from home.

I had managed to get a single room by mistake. Normally freshmen are put in doubles, but due to overbooking and a last minute cancellation I had been put in a single room. Granted, it wasn't a glamorous room by any standards. The walls were bare and chalky, the floor was coated in so much varnish you couldn't even feel the linoleum, and the toilet was older than my parents. Despite this, it was mine. I was away from the stress of New York and was within a short ride (or flight) of Rose.

After promising to be responsible, call each night, and come back to New York if anything big happened, my parents finally got ready to leave. Mom kissed and hugged me so many times I swear it was as if she forgot it only took me 40 minutes to fly home. As Dad waited for her to get the car he pulled something out of his pocket.

"Jake, I want you to have this. I know I'm kind of new to the whole magic thing-especially since you and your sister have been in it your whole lives-but I think it might come in handy."

"What is it?" I asked, staring at the beautiful blue jewel he held in his hand.

"This," he said pulling out a leather strap to make the jewel into a necklace, "is a little protection and good luck charm I had Fu whip up for you. I know you're an adult, and you don't need us any more…" He seemed hurt by this last bit, "But, I want you to have this so that you will know that we love you and that you will stay safe while we aren't with you."

"Dad, just because I'm 18 doesn't mean I don't need you. I still have no idea how to tie a tie, or make lasagna, or balance a checkbook right. I'll always need and love you guys, even if you aren't right here." I smiled and gladly accepted the necklace with a small blue pendant. When I put it on I felt it cling to my skin, radiating a light around me.

"Now, it won't stop everything from hurting you, and you'll still have to study for tests, but it will help a bit when it comes to the small things." He smiled, hugging me.

"I'm going to miss you Jake."

"I'll miss you too, Dad."

I waited until after Mom's car pulled away to start tearing up-no point in doing it when they could see me-I didn't want them to cry too.


	5. Thanksgiving

Adjusting to the added freedom was fantastic. I had scheduled it so that I didn't have any classes until 10, and I managed to sleep in most days. I still trained and kept in shape, just in case I was needed, but for the most part I got to enjoy college life. Rose and I managed to finally start dating IRL and things heated up between us. I'm not going to recall specifics-as I want to try to keep this clean-but we did end up sleeping over at each other's places quite a few times.

I usually flew home once or twice a week. It was funny, but flying feels different when you don't have to worry about crashing into buildings or people looking up at you. Out in the suburbs and beyond there wasn't much impeding me, so I often took my time and soaked up the scenery (though I will admit I learned to still pay attention after smashing head-first into an abnormally tall oak tree). The visits were always nice, and the fact that my parents didn't mind that I did my laundry at home was always welcomed ($2 for one load at the campus laundromat, that's insane!).

After a few months in this routine I decided that it was time that I see if I could introduce Rose formally to my family. When we had dated the first time (back before the timeline shifted) she had met my parents, but we never really spent that much time together as a unit. I decided with Thanksgiving coming up-and her parents and sister still living in a country that never celebrated Thanksgiving-I could invite her over and see how things would play out. After some hesitation she accepted my offer, knowing that, while my family didn't hate her, she had (in her past life) attempted to exterminate all we held dear…

Given that flight was usually best done solo (and that Rose also had to bring three duffel bags full of clothes and other miscellaneous stuff), I suggested we take the train to New York and have my parents meet us there. The ride up was a lot quieter than normal, with the normally bubbly Rose deep in thought.

"Hey, what's up?" I put my hand on her shoulder and half smiled, looking into her deep blue eyes.

"I'm so nervous. I'm never nervous and its making me more nervous." She sighed. "I know what I did in my past-even if that was a different me-and I can't undo it. But, I'm afraid that isn't a good enough excuse to make it so your parents don't hate me. Hell, I nearly killed you and your grandfather multiple times! How do you not hate me?"

I nervously looked around to make sure none of the other passengers had overheard our conversation, and assured they hadn't, replied. "Rose, I know why you did those things. You were confused, manipulated, and not really you at all. The Rose I know now is the real Rose. Happy, kind, intelligent, fierce-this is the real you. Even if you did do those things, I know it wasn't because you wanted to, it was because you thought you wanted to."

I paused, then gently kissed her forehead and tilted her eyes up to face mine. "I will always love you, and always have. I promise you that we will make this work." She rolled her eyes but smiled at the cliché.

When we got off my parents were waiting outside the station to pick us up. Dad had never known about the Huntsclan (aside from the passing references I made to it during our discussions of my past battles), but Mom knew who Rose was-or had been. Despite this she still tried to act cordially, but insisted that I ride up front with her while Rose and Dad shared the back seat. When we got home she parked the car out front and waited for Dad and Rose to get out, then put her hand over my seatbelt.

"Jake, I know you like this girl, but are you sure you know what you're doing?"

"Yes Mom, I'm sure." I replied, indignant.

"Look, I'm just not sure if Rose is the right girl. I have nothing against her now, but… You know who she was. I just don't know if that's the right type of girl for you. I have a friend in Brooklyn who has a girl about your age…"

"No Mom. I don't want to meet your friend's daughter. I love Rose."

"You say that, but you don't understand. Rose is the only girl you've ever even thought about, how do you know if its love?"

"How do I know if its love?!" I was furious, "I know its love because every morning I wake up and think about her. In class I ache to be near her. When we meet my heart jumps into my throat like it's the first time I'm seeing her. When we kiss it's electric, and when we do more than that, well, it's FANTASTIC!" I paused to rub in the fact that I was sleeping with her. "I know it's weird, dating someone who was once your mortal enemy. But she isn't that now. And honestly, Huntsgirl wasn't Rose. She was what happened when the Huntsclan manipulated an innocent little girl and warped her for their own purposes. Do you have any idea what she went through? No, you don't. She regrets every minute of it. Even though in this world, she never did any of it. You cannot imagine how nervous she is right now. She loves me and knows that that isn't good enough for you. You're going to judge her based on a past, which I may remind you, isn't even her real past now!"

Mom was silent for a minute. I knew I had said too much, but I wasn't going to take it back. It was all true.

"I'm sorry Jake. I know this is a different Rose, but…" She paused, trying to choke back tears, "I don't want you to get hurt. What if its all, you know…"

I knew where she was going-she didn't want me to end up led along by Rose as a ploy to have her slay a dragon. I was hurt she had even subconsciously suggested that Rose-this Rose-was capable of doing such a thing. She had the old Rose's memories, but she never wanted to act that way again. She loved me, I knew it. And I loved her.

"I'm going to pretend you didn't suggest that." I said, feeling wounded. "I'm going to blow off some steam. I'll be back in a few minutes."

With that I undid the belt and left the car, quickly shifting into dragon form and flying off. I landed a block away in an empty construction site and found the thickest piece of metal I could. It was an I beam, about ten feet long. I bent it and broke it, melting and punching it until there was nothing but a twisted lump of metal left. I then shifted back to human form and decided it was time to go home. When I got there I walked inside, pretending everything was okay. I was hurt, but I didn't want to show that to anyone. Weakness is not something I strove to show others, and as long as I acted as peacekeeper I thought that everything should work out just fine. With time things improved, and though the first day or so was rough by Thanksgiving dinner everyone was getting along okay. I was glad that I finally had a normal life-a family, a girlfriend, a promising future. Everything was good.


	6. Haley I

College continued most of the same way-aside from the occasional class in marketing or calculus (I still don't know why they required that!) and an odd dragon emergency here or there, things were good. Haley seemed to do well in New York, and Philadelphia wasn't without its magical side. I normally hadn't ventured down here often when I was still in training, but I remembered a few of the spots Fu had taken me when he had to get especially rare ingredients or potions. Grandpa informed me of people who needed my help, and in general, it was easy enough. There was one exception though-as what always seems to be the case.

During the last week of classes (right before finals) I got a call from Grandpa during my history class. I quickly excused myself, but no one seemed to mind. The professor didn't take attendance, and there were too many other people to really care if I slipped out to take a call. Apparently something big was going on, but I couldn't quite understand what. Grandpa was screaming in Chinese and sounded hysterical.

"Zhè hěn zāogāo, suǒyǐ, bù hǎo! Wǒ bù gǎn xiāngxìn zhè yǐjīng fāshēngle!" He screamed over the phone.

"Gramps, I can't understand what you're saying. Take a deep breath, and tell me again."

He listened to my advice, I heard him breathe deeply in the receiver, then he began again, "Jake, Chang has figured out how to bring the temple back from the shadows and is planning to do it on the next full moon, which is only a few days away! She has found an ancient dragon text which states that during the full moon the temple can be summoned through the sacrifice of a pure dragon."

"Okay, so what's pure mean?"

"'Pure' in this case refers to a child, the stronger their power; the more likely the spell is to succeed. For Chang, this meant Haley."

I still don't know why he hadn't led with that-but I was understandably alarmed. Haley was considered the only dragon who fit the description. Her ability to do everything better than me seemed to extend into the dragon realm as well, with her managing to handle the magical needs of New York and her "regular" life with little trouble (it probably helped she had more time to train and acclimate than I ever did). She was also still considered a child, making her the best candidate for the spell to be successful-something Chang knew, no doubt.

"Where is Haley?"

"I do not know, young one. We are all concerned."

At this point Fu took the phone from Grandpa, "Kid, I know this isn't good. No one knows where Haley is. All we do know is that she had left for school this morning, but she never arrived. Even with dragon business the little goody-goody always gets your mom or dad to call her in late so she wouldn't get in trouble. After a search of her usual route Gramps found her backpack, only this time it was covered in blood. It seems as if Chang had ambushed her and is planning on taking her to Hong Kong to once again open the temple and release her master, the dark dragon."

It's amazing what the human body (or dragon body, in my case) does when it reacts to bad news. In my case I felt like someone had just slammed me into a concrete wall then froze me solid. I was numb and ached everywhere.

"Jake, I will get the college to reschedule your exams. Please come home immediately, and bring Rose with you."

"Why do you want me to bring Rose?"

"Rose may not be in the Huntsclan any longer, but she does have substantial experience with tracking magical creatures, including dragons. She may be able to help us."

After we hung up I called Rose and filled her in on everything, she had just finished her last final-Integrity in Journalism-and would meet me on campus. I told her that would take too long, I would meet her there. I changed into dragon form and picked her up on the roof of her (considerably nicer than my) dorm. At this point I hadn't asked if she minded me flying her around, and realized I should have explained so before I got there.

"Rose, I'm sorry-wait, I didn't ask if you were okay to fly… Are you?"

She smiled, "No, but given the situation I figured we aren't going to take the train back to New York." She pulled out a pair of swim goggles to protect her (non-dragon) eyes from the sting of the wind.

I dove off the roof of the dorm and flew as fast as I could back to my parent's house in New York. When we arrived I was surprised to see human cop cars outside. I quickly ducked into an alley and let Rose slide off my back as I changed back to my human form.


	7. Haley II

On the way Rose had called Spud and Trixie, Trixie was on her way and Spud had already been with my parents for the last half hour, trying to brighten a bleak situation. When I walked in my parents and Grandpa were sitting on the living room couch with Fu sitting on the floor next to them. Dad was holding Mom's head protectively, stroking her hair and promising that things would be alright. Grandpa was nervously patting Fu's head, and Fu was doing his best to act like a normal dog would and not break down crying as the detective continued asking questions.

When I walked in Spud was the first to see me. He greeted me, "You know, in any other circumstance it would be awesome to see you right now. I'm so sorry, are you okay?"

I smiled, sadly, and agreed, "Yeah, it would be nice if it wasn't for this… and I will be okay when I get Haley back and make Chang pay for this."

Rose followed behind me as we all walked into the living room. Mom introduced me to the detective, and explained that I had been at college at the time of the attack. What followed was fifteen minutes of hell, having to hide the truth of why Haley had been kidnapped as best we could while still conveying the need to find Haley. The detective seemed to understand our worry and promised that they would be checking all outbound flights and transit from the city, as well as placing an Amber Alert out for Haley.

After he was finished with his questions I waited for him to leave, then turned to face everyone.

"So, why are we talking to the NYPD blues instead of the magical authorities? No offense, but I kinda doubt that one of these donut munchers would do much to stop Chang."

"I panicked when I heard Haley was missing, and I'm new to this whole magic thing, so I called 911." Dad stammered.

"It's alright," I sighed, realizing my anger was misplaced, "We need all the help we can get."

As we sat there silently, we only knew for certain that we had to get to Hong Kong and beat Chang to the mountain where the temple would appear. If we did that, then we could ambush her and save Haley.

Trixie arrived later that night and we all prepared for the earliest flight we could find for Hong Kong, knowing that if we got there first we could save Haley.

When the plane landed we departed and got to the peak where the temple normally stood as quickly as possible. A few tourists were there, taking in the view, but aside from that the peak was deserted. We knew it wouldn't be long until Chang started scouting out the location and preparing for the sacrifice. Our plan was to wait until the night of the planned sacrifice and lay in wait for her to approach, then ambush her.

Grandpa had contacted the dragon council and they had agreed to the plan, sending a number of other dragons to the area to help us look for Haley and stop Chang in the event we could not find her before the full moon. We met them back at the hotel later that day. Waiting in the lobby were dragons from various nations: Australia, Germany, England, and Denmark were all there, as well as a few other dragons from nearby-distant relations of Grandpa's Chinese line.

Despite our best efforts we were not able to find Haley or Chang prior to the night of the planned sacrifice. The other dragons, Spud, Rose, Grandpa, and I staked out the peak. Mom, Dad, and Trixie waited a bit away, checking potential routes for Chang to arrive. Eventually Trixie spotted Chang arriving from the south, carrying an unconscious human Haley as she flew.

Trixie quickly paged us using her walkie talkie, "Jakey, I just saw Chang with your sister flying in from the south west. Looks like she's moving pretty quick. Haley's unconscious, so be careful not to let her fall."

"Copy, we're on it." I replied, my blood running hot as I turned dragon and prepared to fight for my sister.

The other dragons also prepared for battle, quietly shifting into form and getting into formation as we approached Chang's position. What ensued was a quick battle.

"Hey Chang!" I yelled from across the sky, "How about you give us Haley and come quietly? Otherwise we're going to have to lay the smack-down on you." I cracked my knuckles at this and glared at her.

"How about you fly away American dragon, lest you end up in a worse state than your sister." She cackled.

"Alright, I tried. Guys, kick it!" The other dragons shot forth from their hiding positions and we charged Chang. She was surprised for a moment, then decided to cut her losses and run. She dropped Haley from her claws and began to dart back toward the city.

"Haley!" I screamed as Grandpa lunged forward and grabbed the net she was held in.

"She is breathing. She will be okay." He reassured me.

Chang was heading toward the skyline, weaving between the other dragons trying to catch her. I could feel my body tensing as a rage grew inside of me. I pushed my way forward and grabbed her leg as she was about to escape into the high rise towers. I used my momentum to pull her downward, then slammed her into a concrete walking path below. The impact knocked the air out of her, and I quickly pinned her hands and legs using my claws. She coughed as the apparent damage of the impact forced her to change back into human form.

I was furious. "Alright, motherfucker, you officially screwed with the wrong kid. It's my job to protect the magical community, but when you fuck with my sister…" my eyes grew red at this point, "You've gone too far."

Grandpa landed behind me, "Jake, you've done enough, the others will take her away to await her punishment."

"No G, not this time. Chang has done enough." With that I watched her eyes grow wide as I pulled back my hand and fully extended my claws.

"Goodbye Chang. Say hello to the Huntsman for me." With that I slashed open her throat. She gagged as the crimson blood quickly pooled from the gaping claw marks. I waited until she stopped struggling to let go. When I was sure she was dead I got off her corpse and changed back to human form. By that point all the other dragons had arrived, as well as my parents and Spud and Trixie. I turned to face the horrified looks and saw Rose staring at me, gaping. I know she had once done this herself, and the look of absolute terror confirmed she never wanted to do it again. I lifted my hands into the air and for the first time felt the blood on my wrists. I looked at my hands and saw they were both bright red with blood.

"Jake… you killed another dragon." Grandpa muttered, sadly turning his head to the ground.

I could feel his shame among the horror of the others, I collapsed to my knees and held my hands above my head. England and Australia walked over and placed me in a pair of handcuffs with sphinx hair imbedded in them.

"I'm sorry."

I was held for the evening by the others, then released at the request of the dragon council, who said they would deal with me in due time.

Haley survived, barely. She spent almost a week in the ICU as we waited for her to wake back up. I could barely pull myself away from the beside. She looked peaceful, but I knew she had gone through hell. When she finally woke up I couldn't stop hugging her. It would be a while until she was normal again, but she was back, and that's what mattered.


	8. Adventures in Therapy

After a few weeks my life had mostly returned to its chaotic "normal". I managed to pass my finals (somehow) and was back on track with my life. Shortly before school started again I was summoned by the dragon council to defend my actions in slaying Chang. It had not been part of our plan, but seeing her holding Haley like that made something snap inside of me. I was disgraced of my actions, but the fact that Chang nearly killed my sister kept me from losing my status as American dragon. The council sympathized with my motives and decided to spare me the traditional punishment of losing my abilities and making me a mortal. I was, however, required to undergo therapy for a few months, which arguably helped more than I could have ever anticipated.

Therapy was twice a week, Tuesdays and Thursdays. I didn't have classes and the council had arranged for me to visit a local magical therapist. It was a short flight from campus in the northern part of the city.

Dr. Crandall was a thin woman with piercing blue eyes and short black hair. When she first greeted me I was almost sure I had ended up in the wrong office. In the waiting room there was no sign of magic whatsoever, and the receptionist was a girl I had seen in one of my science courses. I quickly called Fu to make sure I had the right address, and when he confirmed it I decided to check in. It was about ten minutes before she came into the reception area and greeted me.

"Hello, you must be Jake Long. Would you like me to call you Jake or Mr. Long?" She smiled as she spoke, an automatic gesture she had learned through years of clients.

"Jake is fine."

"Okay Jake, please follow me. My office is right back here."

She led me down a short hallway past a set of restrooms and a handful of motivational posters into her back room and gestured toward a sofa across from her. She sat down and began introducing herself, dispelling my thoughts that I was in the wrong place.

"Jake, I bet you're probably thinking that you're in the wrong place. What is this human therapist going to possibly do to help me?" She quickly transformed into dragon form, a bright blue and gold, before flashing back to her regular appearance. She smiled, and continued. "My name is Jane Crandall, and like you I am also a dragon. However, I am not from these United States. I was born in France to Canadian parents and grew up there before my family moved back to Canada. I eventually ended up moving here a few decades ago with my husband to be closer to his family."

I nodded, not caring, but pretending to. The more she talked about herself, the less I had to say.

"As a teenager I decided to study magic and science hand in hand to discover what really made people work. Psychology was a natural path to help understand people, and although I know I can never fully understand all you have been through, I hope you will be willing to talk with me and allow me to help you in areas you want to work on."

I scoffed slightly, I wasn't planning on opening up to a total stranger, let alone one who supposed that she could help me when she had no idea what it was like to carry the burden of an entire country's safety on your shoulders before you even got your first set of braces.

The first two or three sessions consisted of her asking me questions and me trying my best to deflect them and count down until the mandated session ended. By the time the fourth session arrived she welcomed me as usual, but had a bit sterner of a look on her face.

"Jake, the last few sessions I've noticed you haven't really opened up at all. I understand it may be difficult to explain how you feel…"

At that point I cut her off, "Really, you expect me to open up to you with all my feelings? I don't even know you. And you have no idea what its like to live my life."

She sighed, "Jake, if you don't want to talk anymore I can contact the dragon council and explain you don't need the therapy. If you don't want to try this I can respect that. Hopefully someday you will be willing to open up."

For some reason, the way she said this convinced me to stay. I sat back down and decided to at least try being honest with my answers. Over the next few months I managed to change a lot. I realized that hiding my pain or anger wasn't healthy, and that the stress that I felt-while unavoidable-could be managed in better ways. It was about this time that I started considering what my life would be like after graduation-what I was going to do with my life.

I was majoring in accounting at the time (following in Dad's footsteps), but I never really loved my classes. Business was easy enough (except for calculus), but I really couldn't picture myself sitting in a cubicle every weekday until I was in my 60s-a reality that my Dad was living. He had been so engrossed in work he seemed dazed and oblivious most of the time at home when I was growing up. It hadn't been until our first trip to Hong Kong and his discovery of my dragon side that he finally started paying attention. I didn't want that to happen to me.


	9. A New Form of Education

After I finished freshman year I decided to change majors. I was going into education. I decided that I would be the teacher I had always needed but never got, the opposite of Rotwood-someone who listened, who tried to help at all times, someone that genuinely made a difference. Plus the summers off and shorter work hours allowed more time for dragon business and my hypothetical future family.

I broke the news to everyone at the same time. My parents had invited Rose, Spud, and Trixie over for a barbecue when school was over and Trixie had a few days off. I decided to wait until the day had begun to enter a lull, then made my announcement.

I stood up and borrowed a glass soda bottle from Haley, flicking it with my finger I managed to catch everyone's attention. "I want to make an announcement."

"Clearly, why else would you be flicking that soda bottle?" Trixie quipped.

I rolled my eyes, "I have decided I am going to change majors. I am going to be a middle school science teacher."

The reactions ranged from confused to annoyed, with Dad lamenting the money he'd already invested in my old major. I reminded him that almost all my classes had been general education ones-and would still count, and that the others could be put toward a minor in business as a back-up. He apologized, and congratulated me on deciding to follow a new path-though he warned he wouldn't be willing to pay for another change. I assured him that this was what I was confident in doing. I knew it was the right plan for me.

College whizzed by as I thrived in my new classes. The smaller class size in the education department meant I could easily ask questions and get the information I needed to succeed. As graduation neared Rose and I began to grow even closer, in junior year we decided to rent an apartment between our schools and I was happier than I had ever been before. Besides the fact that I was able to be around Rose constantly, and all that entailed, I also knew that I was making a difference. Being a teacher meant that I could truly guide kids who needed it, and that appealed to me (what can I say, I'm a hopeless heroic?).

Senior year followed suit, with graduation nearing things seemed to finally be working into what I could call a state of normalcy. Sure, the world was still in continual peril. It seemed like there was never a real break from the continual threat of some ancient what's-it or doodad emerging and bringing forth some new era. Seriously, I'm still taking care of tracking down and preemptively destroying these things. How nuts were we in the past to invent devices that could completely end the world then do it again and again! I've compiled a list in another file, but seriously, there are almost 200 ancient artifacts that I've personally taken care of in the last 30 or so years. That means in some point in time over 200 people or creatures independently thought "Let's destroy the world so we can rebuild it for ourselves!"

Anyway, as time passed I got more used to it. Heck, by graduation I had managed to stop an ancient evil from Atlantis, Greece, and Georgia! Though it kind of got on my nerves with the continual reworking of my schedule to accommodate studying and battling, Rose helped a ton by always being there to help me along the way.

After graduation I took a position teaching at a school outside the city in the suburbs, some little town called Phoenixville. It was weird being in a place where all the buildings were so small, but it eventually grew on me (despite the fact that all the houses in our neighborhood were unerringly identical and beige). Rose and I got engaged around that time as well.


	10. Propositions

The actual proposal was something I had planned for months in advance. It was New Year's Eve and we were spending the weekend with my parents before we had to go back to Pennsylvania. Haley was out with some friends, but Spud and Trixie had managed to both stop by (having heard my plan in advance). Spud had brought along his girlfriend, and later wife, Stacy. At the time she didn't know I was a dragon, though Spud had gently broken to her the magic world's existence. Because of this I figured she wouldn't be too concerned if I suddenly changed. I decided to mess around a bit with the former head cheerleader and "better than you" girl from middle school-even if she was a lot less haughty now. When she went to the kitchen to grab a new batch of appetizers from the oven I snuck up behind her and silently transformed.

"Hey Stacy." I said, waiting for her to turn around, stifling a laugh.

She turned around to face me, but instead of seeing the 5'9 spiky haired best friend of her boyfriend she saw a 6'8 bright red dragon. She screamed for a second, nearly dropping the appetizers, before she caught her breath. Spud came racing in, followed by Mom and Dad. At that point I was doubled over, laughing.

"Jake, come on! You know she doesn't know you're a dragon!" Spud scolded me. "Come on, change back, man."

"Fine, I just wanted to see her reaction. It's been long enough for her to know." I shifted back into human form. "Sorry, I just wanted to see the look on your face-kinda payback for all the times you made fun of me in middle school."

Stacy was silent for a second before she laughed, explaining it was okay. "Honestly, it makes way more sense than any of those lame excuses you ever used. Sorry again about being a bit of a bitch."

"All is forgiven, believe me, you could've been a lot worse."

Rose rolled her eyes. My pranks were one of my many endearing qualities, though she would never admit that.

As everyone clustered around the TV to countdown to the ball drop in Times Square I pulled the small black box out of my pocket and waited next to the couch where Rose sat. As we all counted down to one I waited. Three…two…one… I knelt down and pulled open the box, as I had practiced nearly a dozen times to make sure I could do it correctly.

"Rose Dillion, will you make me the happiest man alive and do me the honor of marrying me? I love you more than any other person in existence (present company excluded), and all I want is to spend the rest of my life with you."

She smiled as she started tearing up, her eyes sparkling as she replied, "Yes, yes, yes!"

I beamed as I took the ring out of the box and slid it on her finger (boy I hoped I had gotten the right size). It fit perfectly. Trixie couldn't help but scream excitedly, Spud congratulated me with a fist bump and Dad lifted me a half foot in the air as he picked me up in a bear hug, Mom followed with a kiss and her approval.

I decided to call Haley and then Grandpa to share the news. Haley was out with some friends from school at a party, but after the third try she finally picked up. After an initial annoyance at the interruption of her evening she congratulated us and said she couldn't wait for the wedding-and that she'd better be a bridesmaid. We agreed. When I tried to call Grandpa the call went to voicemail-not surprising since he never carried his cell phone with him. I called Fu and asked him if Grandpa was with him. He wasn't. Fu had spent the evening with Veronica and a few other ladies in the magical world. Last he'd seen Grandpa was at home watching the ball drop on TV. After we told him the news he started to congratulate us-only to be cut short by a giddy cry from someone in the background that she had lost her drink in the hot tub. I hung up at that point, not wanting to know too much about Fu's romantic life.

I couldn't wait to share the news, so I decided to fly Rose over to Grandpa's. When we got there the door was locked, so I knocked and called up that we were there. After a few tries I decided to use the spare key he'd given me to let myself in. When I got in everything looked normal, and I heard the TV from the back room. I announced our presence as I pushed aside the curtain. Grandpa was laying on the couch, asleep, the blue light from the television reflecting off his face. I motioned for Rose to be quiet and walked over behind him toward the light switch on the wall.

Finally having the opportunity to one up Grandpa was something I had long wished for. Due to his trained reflexes and senses he rarely presented an opportunity to be challenged, and often made it clear that I still had much more training ahead of me when I tried. I snuck up behind him and was about to flick the lights on when he told me to stop it without even opening his eyes.

"Young one, you should know better than to try to sneak in on me."

I rolled my eyes. I should have known better. He opened his eyes and shuffled over to the television, turning it off. I turned the lights on and he greeted Rose and I, "So, what are you two doing over here this late? I thought you were spending New Years with your parents."

"We were." I replied.

"Then why are you breaking into Grandpa's shop at 1:13 instead of waiting until tomorrow to visit like a normal person?" This is when he saw the glint of light off of Rose's ring.

"Congratulations. It took you long enough, Jake." He smiled as he shuffled into the kitchen to make some tea.

"How'd you figure it out?" Rose asked.

"The ring on your finger. I may not be as keen as I once was, but I'd have to be blind not to notice that."

"We really can't surprise you, can we?"

"No. You can't." He smirked as he began to pour us water for our tea.

He congratulated us on the engagement further and wished us much luck, seeming proud, but also a bit sad. I knew he missed my grandmother. She had died shortly after my mom was born and it broke his heart. Even with all the magic in the world at his disposal he couldn't stop the tumor.


	11. First Comes Love

The wedding was in September of that year. Let me tell you this, there is nothing equally frustrating and expensive as planning a wedding. In addition to getting ready "Save the Date" and "RSVP" cards (which aren't the same thing) we also had to book a location, arrange travel for relatives, plan catering, get outfits-including the bridesmaid dresses and groomsmen tuxedos, book a DJ, and plan out how Rose's and my dad's non-magic relatives would mingle with my magic friends and family.

We eventually decided that we should just invite humanoid creatures to the wedding, saving ourselves the headache of having to wipe thirty-odd Dillon family members' memories. I reminded my family that the Dillons would likely never know my true identity-like how Dad's family didn't, and that we needed to avoid any suspicious behavior. It was easy enough to control most of my family but Greg-ever the idiot-nearly blew the whole thing when he set a chair on fire while trying to impress one of Rose's cousins.

The ceremony itself was relatively normal, we had decided on a small church near where we lived for the event, with the reception being in a park not too far away. When the time came for Rose to walk down the aisle I couldn't help but think how, despite the fact that I was always seemingly running into some catastrophic artifact, that I couldn't be luckier. After the vows and our first kiss as a married couple we managed to get a few private moments before the barrage of family and friends insisted on getting photos with us. Spud had decided on getting drone footage of the reception, which nearly led to the destruction of our wedding cake, but aside from that everything ran smoothly.

After the exhausting day we decided to hold off on traditional honeymoon activities until the next morning-plus we had to share our house with my parents and Haley, which wouldn't have made it all that appealing anyway… By the time everyone left the next day we were both insatiable. Seriously, I'm not going to share too much (because again, this isn't some smut magazine or anything) but it was FANTASTIC. It's most likely that we conceived our first child sometime during that next week, though to be honest I can't say exactly when or where-given the frequency of our "activities" together and the number of places we tried out at home.

When Rose and I found out she was pregnant I was elated I was going to be a dad. The funny thing about parenthood is that until it happens you never realize how excited you are about it. It was agonizing waiting the few months until we were able to tell everyone. Finally, like we had a year earlier, on New Years we made another big announcement.

This time it was at our house, though. We had invited everyone down from New York for the long weekend. Trixie had managed to get some time off from the hospital on base, and Spud and Stacy had driven down with my parents. Haley was also down, and she had brought Grandpa and Fu along with her.

When we broke the news it was similar to my proposal. As soon as the clock struck midnight Rose and I stepped in front of the TV.

"We have an announcement to make…" I began.

"I'm pregnant!" Rose exclaimed.

"Good job kid! I gotta make a call and collect on some biscuits." Fu congratulated me and whipped out his phone. "Hey Ernie, guess who's having a kid? Yup. You owe me…"

"Congratulations!" Mom almost shouted, running over to Rose and placing her hand over her stomach. "Boy or girl?"

"We don't know." Rose replied.

"And we don't want to. As long as they're healthy, we're happy." I continued, defending our decision to not know the gender.

"Why didn't you tell me sooner? You know I'm specializing in prenatal care! Rose, honey, you and I need to talk…" Trixie pulled Rose toward the kitchen to sit down and discuss the many multivitamins and exercises she would need to do.

"Congrats man!" Spud and I fistbumped. "So, does this make me, like, and honorary uncle?"

"Of course man!" I had known spud since we were kids, he was as close to a brother as I had.

My sister Haley quickly interjected, "And I'm an aunt! Oh my God! I'm going to need to learn how to knit."

"Why do you need to know how to knit to be an aunt?" Stacy asked.

"Every Christmas Jake and I always got matching scarves from Dad's sister. I don't intend to let the tradition stop with me."

I smiled, even though she might be a royal pain in the ass and know it all, Haley did genuinely care.

While Mom, Rose, and Trixie were talking in the kitchen Dad pulled me aside for a minute to congratulate me. "Jake, I'm so excited! I'm going to be a grandpa! Or wait, granddad, maybe pop-pop… Any who, congrats! I hope you know what you're getting into. Kids are a lot of work-especially when they're little. You in particular were a Mr. Messy when it came to toilet training. I think your mother still has the tapes from that."

I laughed as I rolled my eyes,"I know Dad, even if my kids are as crazy as I was I still can't wait."

Grandpa took me aside a minute later, telling me to walk with him out back.

I threw on a jacket as I slipped away out the back sliding door, remembering not to shut it all the way, as it seemed to lock itself for no reason. When we had moved in the people before us had already done some work on the backyard. It was a small fenced in yard with a patio and a few young trees (no older than the house itself). Everything was still and cold, December-or I guess at that point January-wasn't much different here than it was in New York in terms of weather.

The backyard had a thin layer of snow over everything which reflected the moonlight through the cold air. I could see my breath as we walked toward a bench Rose had put in next to her flower garden-all dormant for the next few months. He brushed off the snow and then motioned for me to sit down next to him.

He smiled warmly at me, but his eyes seemed concerned.

"So G, why exactly are we sitting out here freezing our asses off instead of sitting in my warm dining room thirty feet that way?" I asked, pointing at the sliding door we had just walked out of.

He sighed, then began. "Jake, what you and Rose have is something that has never happened before. Dragons and humans have had children before-you and Haley being examples. But never have dragons bred with anyone else in the magic community."

"Wait, isn't Rose human? She was in the Huntsclan, and they were all humans."

"Not quite, young dragon…The Huntsclan was a powerful force that did rely somewhat on magic. Dragon birthmarks are not merely created by chance, they signaled an individual who had immense potential in the magical arts. The Huntsclan never knew this because of their hatred of the magical community, but they were part magic themselves."

I frowned, "So, what this meant for Rose and I?"

Grandpa responded, "I am unsure of the specific results, as this has never happened before, but if what I believe is true, Rose and I will be the parents of the most powerful magical children in the world. You are already a strong dragon at a young age, and Rose is the last of her kind. As a result, your children would likely inherit both your heritages, and be able to wield the powers of a dragon and the Huntsclan."

He paused a minute to let me understand the weight of the situation, then continued, "The Huntsclan were naturally adept with technology and were resilient and agile in battle. While they could not control their magic, having long forsaken any knowledge of them having it, they still were much stronger and faster than normal humans."

We sat in silence for a minute, then I turned to him and asked, "So, why are you only telling me this? What about Rose? After all, she's the one who's pregnant."

"Jake, pregnancy for any woman is a delicate time. I do not want to place stress on her by telling her about this. If I am wrong she will have been worried for no reason, but if the child does have the dragon birthmark, then my beliefs are correct."

I nodded, understanding that she already had enough stress with pregnancy and her job-not to mention the missions I had to constantly go out for at all hours of the night. As we walked back inside he promised to tell her after the birth if it was the case, if not, then our child would still be a dragon, if nothing else.


	12. Special Delivery

Our first child, Jonathan Jacob Long was born at 2:18 pm on May 26th. I was in class discussing the water cycle to a room of sixth graders in my honors earth science section when the room phone rang. Normally this meant one of two things, either a student's parent was picking them up early and the office was calling to dismiss them, or Principal West had decided to make a last minute change to the schedule and was calling to have me pass it on to the students. This time it was something else.

"Hello, this is Jake Long, Intermediate Science room 107."

"Hello Mr. Long, this is Sandra Dorchester from the main office."

"So, what can I do for you today, Sandra?"

"Mr. Long your wife has tried calling you on your personal cell phone a number of times and has not been able to get though." I remembered I had forgotten my phone in the car, in a rush to copy finals before the copier had a line halfway to the gym. "Your wife has left a message with us to inform you that she has gone into labor. Congratulations, and best wishes!"

I thanked Sandra and ran across the hall to Phil Benson's classroom. After sharing the news, Phil agreed to watch my class (he had fourth period off) and I ran out to the staff parking lot. After calling Rose to check on her, she told me that she had driven herself to the hospital and was already in a delivery room. After getting the information down, I started the car and drove as fast as I could legally manage to the hospital.

After I checked in at the front desk I went up to the room where Rose was. Her water had broken earlier in the day and she was already near fully dilated. A nurse was in the room, tending to her when I came in. After I heard about the nearness of the delivery I quickly excused myself to call everyone. Mom had taken almost 30 hours with me, and over 20 with Haley. I hadn't expected Rose to be this far along already. Trixie's phone went to voicemail, but I managed to get a hold of Spud, my parents, Grandpa, and Haley.

By the time they arrived John was already a few hours old. The first thing I did when I saw him was cry with joy. He was little-much smaller than I had expected, although it had been a long time since there was a baby in our family. When he was born he already had a head full of dark brown hair and eyes to match. After he was cleaned up I saw he had the same birthmark as Rose, only on the bottom of his left foot.

I cradled him gently when the nurse offered him to me, and walked to place him on Rose's chest. I had no idea how much giving birth required, and Rose was exhausted from the effort.

"Say hello to your son," I placed him on her chest, "and John, say hello to your mom!"

I beamed as I knelt down to hug them both, rubbing his tiny head with my fingers and wondering how someone so small would ever manage to grow up to possibly be the next American dragon.

When Grandpa arrived he kept good on his promise, and explained to Rose the significance of our child. She took the news well, but said that regardless of the outcome he would have always been important to her. Haley was overjoyed at being an aunt, looking forward to spoiling John at every opportunity. My parents were also excited, and decided to share some news with us.

"Jake, your mother and I have some news of our own." Dad rocked back and forth on his heels as he spoke, a tic he had when he was excited.

"I certainly hope you guys aren't pregnant. I don't think I could handle another younger sister." I joked, smiling at Haley. She rolled her eyes and smiled back.

"Heavens no! We're moving!" Mom quickly replied.

"You're moving? Why?" I was surprised, my parents had lived in the same house since before I was born and never had indicated any desire to move elsewhere.

"Well, for one thing I can't be hours away from my grandkids!" Dad declared, waving his arms to emphasize the distance.

"Grandkid. We only have one." Rose and I quickly spoke in unison.

"For now…" I glanced at her; she raised an eyebrow in sarcastic disbelief-after going through labor she didn't want to even consider having another kid for a while.

"Either way, your father managed to secure a transfer to the Philadelphia branch of his company, and I can still cater from home, regardless of where that home is."

"Okay, so when are you going to start looking at houses?" Haley asked, momentarily looking up from her nephew.

"That's the thing… We already put a down payment on one." Mom nervously smiled.

"We figured since Haley was living on campus and you two already settled down here it would make sense to downsize and move closer. So we did some research and found a house." Dad paused, waiting for a reaction.

"Sure… so, where is it?" I asked.

"It's actually only a few houses down from you two. We figure it's important for our grandkids to get to spend time with us, and by living near you two we can always keep an eye on them, just in case."

"Specifically," Dad continued, "It's the brick one on the corner of Second and Chestnut."

After some brief congratulations and discussion of the logistics of moving, Mom said that the house had sold just a few days ago and that they were waiting to tell us until the delivery. Rose and I smiled. My parents might be a bit nosy, but it's always nice to have family nearby. Grandpa said he would continue to live above the electronics shop until Haley was done with school, then he would see what to do.


	13. Parenthood

A few weeks later my parents had finished moving in down the street from us and Rose and I were over our heads parenting. A normal infant would have been hard enough, but one that seemed to possess an uncanny ability to always get in trouble and have magical powers was incredibly challenging. John seemed to be a master of mischief, and loved making messes. By the time he was able to crawl he had already managed to destroy most of furniture and all of his toys. When he hiccupped it often was accompanied by bursts of flame, and his slobber was acidic enough to strip paint off the baseboards. Once he was mobile it was difficult to keep him contained-he had broken three baby gates and two playpens by his first birthday.

It was partially due to this-and the thought of having to raise two kids with magical powers at such an early age-that led Rose to the conclusion that I needed a vasectomy. I relented after it turned out that John was able fully breathe fire at will when he was only a year old. However it was slightly too late, as Rose discovered. While I was recovering from my maimed groin (stupid operation), she realized that she was pregnant again. Our daughter Wendy Susan Long was born nine months later. She too had the mark, and was equally as energetic and magical as her brother, though thankfully she was considerably less destructive.

Thankfully my parents were able to handle the two of them while we worked, but every once in a while we would come home to my Mom or Dad cleaning up crayon off the ceiling or burn marks off the entry floor. As they got a bit older it seemed like they got more in control of their powers. The dragon council decided that given the early appearance of their powers, basic training was mandatory when they started kindergarten.

I hoped the house would last that long.

Grandpa moved in with my parents a few weeks before training was to begin for John, with Haley taking over the duties of New York on her own (not that she seemed to mind). Life in suburbia wasn't without a magical side, and it thankfully was much easier to train in than in New York where it seemed every building had a set of eyes waiting to call the cops complaining about a dragon sighting. Grandpa, John, and I (and later Wendy) trained in the forest a few miles from our house. The land was property of the parks service, and also hid a village of pixies as well as a few other magical creatures.

By this point John had already known about the magical world for some time, some of his friends were magical, plus he had known about his dad (me) as the American Dragon for as long as he had been alive. This wasn't to say that his knowledge made the experience any easier. John was equal parts Rose, Haley, and I. He was strong, smart, and stubborn. Plus he had the attention span of a five year old which made training difficult to say the least. I came to empathize with Grandpa as we tried to get him to pay attention and practice.

Often it would be that he could manage to master a skill or technique easily, but it would take much effort to get him to sit still long enough to pay attention and learn the item at hand. However, he did make a good study once he got himself under control. By the time Wendy was starting (two years later) he could already manage to fully transform, fly, use his fire, and use basic defenses to protect himself. With Wendy also training under us it came to become a contest between the two of them of who could be the better dragon. Wendy quickly caught up with John, though they both ended up at about the same level after a year.

The kids were still too young to really get into battle, but we decided that giving them the opportunity to help magical creatures in need would be fine. Rose, on the other hand, did not agree. Not that she didn't want the kids to help anyone, but she didn't want our eight and six year olds out in harm's way. I couldn't say I faulted her logic. I was already in my 30s at that point and could probably point to more skin that had been scarred than hadn't.


	14. No I in Jake

It was shortly after Wendy's first full year of training, while I was attempting to recover an ancient Druidic Staff (yet another random magical thing that could end the world-lucky me), when its protector- some kind of werebeast-attacked me. The thing must have been close to ten feet tall, and even in dragon form I felt small next to its massive furry hide. I managed to duck most of its swipes at me, and had partially incapacitated it by using my flames. However, it retaliated and managed to land a strike on my left cheek-nearly hitting my ear and killing me, but not quite. At this point I grimaced and decided to flee with the artifact instead of continue fighting the beast. When I emerged from the cave I flew to a high ledge where I knew I would be safe, then transformed back. I could not see out of my left eye, and I could feel blood pouring out of the wounds the beast had left. I had to get medical attention soon or else I would bleed out. I called Grandpa to tell him where I hid the staff and that I was going to the hospital, it went to voicemail-they were all asleep at home.

I flew quickly to the nearest town and collapsed into human form in front of the emergency room of the hospital. I limped as I felt the life pouring out of me, staggering toward the glass doors in front of me. The receptionist screamed as she saw me and called down a stretcher immediately. I fell face-first on the linoleum and blacked out as a doctor rushed to my side. The next morning I woke up in the ICU of Harrison Memorial Hospital in Kentucky. I honestly hadn't remembered anything they did for me, but when I pressed the call button the nurse quickly appeared and seemed glad I was awake. After they sutured my lacerations and managed to secure a transfusion (AB- isn't common a common blood type apparently) they tried to save my eye, but couldn't. I put my hand up to my face and felt the gauze. She continued that I would be on antibiotics for quite some time to prevent infection, but that if everything went well I should be free to return home in a few days. I was on a morphine drip and couldn't feel the pain, but I knew I was messed up.

She also said that I had visitors waiting for me-they hadn't let anyone in while I was resting. I smiled weakly and said that they could come in. She went out into the hall, and a few minutes later I was greeted with a rush of friends and relatives crowding through the door. Rose had brought the kids as well as Mom and Dad, and Grandpa and Fu. Spud had also come down with Stacy (leaving their kids with a sitter) and Trixie had managed to get the time off to check on me as well-complaining how her commanding officer had no idea what it was like to have to actually deal with an emergency.

I sat up in bed and mustered all my strength to appear normal, but could only manage to be upright for a brief moment before I fell back onto the mattress. Rose smiled, saying that I didn't have to act tough anymore, and adjusted the mattress to angle my back up, fiddling with a remote connected to the mattress. No one seemed to mention my injuries, I guess to avoid the elephant in the room-but I couldn't stand it.

"So, on a scale of one to Hamburger Helper, how bad do I look?"

"Jake, it's going to heal-you'll be fine in a few weeks." Rose ran her fingers through my hair and kissed my forehead.

"Jake, Imma be honest, you do kind of look like Freddy Krueger." Spud stated. Rose, Trixie, and Stacy all glared at him.

"What? I said I was being honest. Look, I know Rose loves you and all, so she isn't going to say this, but your face looks like pizza mixed with a dead possum."

"Thanks Spud." I snarked.

"Does it hurt?" John asked, trying to poke the bandage, only to have Rose swat his hand away.

"No, not too much. They've got me on some morphine so daddy can't feel much of anything right now." I smiled lifting my arm to pat his shoulder.

"Daddy, I brought you a book and crayons and my so-soft so that you feel better…" Wendy pulled up her bookbag and dumped a pile of coloring books and crayons on my lap. She then pulled out her so-soft, the baby blanket we had taken her home from the hospital in, and wrapped it around my leg. Her so-soft was her security blanket, so to have it offered was a great honor. I smiled at Wendy and motioned for her to come forward, then kissed her forehead.

"Dad! Your beard is itchy, stop it!"

Rose took the kids back to the hotel while the rest of us talked for a bit.

"So, Jake, did the doctor say anything about…y'know…" Dad trailed off.

"My eye? Yeah. It's done-for. The nurse said that it was damaged beyond use, so they had it surgically removed."

"I'm so sorry, I should have been there- then this wouldn't have happened." Haley was on the verge of tears as she sat down across from me.

"No, stop. It doesn't matter what could have happened. All that matters is what happened. I'm still here, that's what counts." I put my arm on her shoulder. "Besides, if you were there it might have ended up with both of us in the ICU."

Haley smiled sadly, "Well, since you're awake and feeling sappier than ever, I'm going to ask the nurse if we can get you something to eat."

"Do you know any spells that might be able to help Jake?" Stacy asked Spud.

"No, I don't. Maybe Gramps does?"

Up to this point Grandpa had been quiet, standing by the door, not being too close to the others. He sighed as he walked forward, revealing he had been standing in the back to try and conceal his tears. "Young dragon, I am sorry but I do not know how to help. In all my time I have never seen a dragon survive such an attack."

"Kid, Gramps and I will try our best to figure out if there is anything we can do, but you just need to focus on getting better." Fu placed his paw on my shoulder. "You've been through a lot of shit, but you need to learn that this time you need to stop and heal. I know you, and I swear if I even see you thinking about going dragon before this thing is healed I will make sure you are bolted to this bed!"

Haley came back later with a menu and helped me figure out what to order-her recent vegetarianism leading her to try to convince everyone else to do the same. I ordered a sandwich and a few other small things, then played some cards with everyone (Mom had brought a whole poker set in her purse).

Two weeks later I was discharged into an oppressive August heat. Rose had stayed the entire time, with the others visiting as often as they could. The kids were at Mom and Dad's, and Fu was watching our house. Grandpa had gone to New York with Spud and Stacy to try to see if there was anything to help me regain my eye, but hadn't found anything yet. When Rose picked me up the first thing that struck me walking out of the hospital was the heat. I'd been in air conditioning for the past two weeks and it felt like walking into a wall. The humidity didn't help. Rose and I caught a flight back to Pennsylvania, and I gradually managed to train myself to function with only one eye.


	15. Reflections

When the summer ended I returned to teaching, only with one eye instead of my usual two. Grandpa and Spud had been unable to find a magical solution to my predicament, and by this point I decided that I could manage. The most difficult part of adjusting to the loss was having to compensate for the reduced depth perception. Thankfully, I was still able to pass my driver's license exam (my license now sporting a special symbol for monocular vision). It was kind of interesting to walk through the halls and have the kids think I was a badass because I wore an eye patch.

After everything had fully healed I decided it was time to get back to training the kids. During my recuperation Rose had mandated that I remain human to avoid any potential complications. When I was finally able to change the first thing I did was look to see how the scars had impacted my dragon form. I normally wasn't vain enough to look at myself for long in the mirror, having given up my half-hour hair gel routine in high school, but I took a good while looking at how my scales had healed. The three claw marks were deep in my cheek. My eye was also missing in dragon form, but the scars were much more visible-one clearly slicing through my empty socket. The indentations were a darker red than the rest of my crimson scales, and strangely, smooth to the touch. The beast had just missed causing my death, with the top scar stopping right behind my left ear. I sighed, turning to have my right side face the mirror, remembering what I had used to look like. I had stood there for a minute when Rose walked into the bathroom with a load of clean towels, then I quickly shifted back.

"I saw that, you know." She said, smiling as she placed the towels in the linen closet.

"Saw what?" I feigned innocence.

"Dr. Rothstein said that you're near fully healed, you can 'dragon up' if you want to." She saw my slight frown at the words and seemed to read my mind-as only someone who has known you for years can. "Unless, you don't want to?"

"I do. It's just…" I sighed. "Look at me." I shifted into dragon form and sat on the side of the tub. I tilted my head up to show her how disfigured my face had become, then quickly covered it with my palm, hiding the scars as I looked down at the tile floor.

"Jake, look at me." She tilted my chin up. "These don't matter." She ran her hand across my scarred face. "You are strong and brave, and above all, my husband. I love you, and all those you protect love you too. Just because you look different doesn't mean you're any less of a hero."

I smiled, "Thanks. I just don't love the whole 'one eye look' yet."

She leaned over and kissed me. "Well, I think it makes you look tough and kind of sexy…"

She bit my ear and I blushed. "Aren't the kids home?"

"John's over at Kenny's and Wendy is learning how to make dumplings with your Mom. I'd say we have about an hour."

After that first transformation back it was about a week until I started training the kids again, and in the short time I had spent in the hospital and recovering they had already managed to make impressive progress with their aerial drills. As time passed it became evident that John and Wendy would be immensely powerful dragons. By the time John was in third grade he had already managed to create chi doppelgangers (something most dragons struggle to do until they are well practiced), and Wendy followed suit shortly after.


	16. Spud and Trixie

I suppose at this point it would make sense to talk more about Spud and Trixie and what ended up happening with their personal lives, given that I seem to have overlooked it so far. Spud and I have managed to stay pretty close, partially helped by our kids being close in age, and partially in that he can teleport from New York to Phoenixville whenever we want to hang out. Trixie and I are still friends as well, but with the demands of the Air Force we don't get to hang out as much as we did when we were younger, so it can be a bit challenging.

Spud and Stacy got married shortly after Rose and I did. Spud, never being one to follow trends, decided to propose to Stacy on the day after Valentine's. He always stocked up on the reduced candy, but that year he had picked up a box with something special in mind. Spud hid the ring in a box of candy hearts and invited Stacy to pick one out. She did, and as she pulled out the heart she felt the ring. According to Spud she said that some metal from the machine must have fallen in the box, and nearly threw it out. He managed to convince her to pour out the candy to see what it was, and when she saw the ring he proposed.

They got married one year to the date after the proposal, and started having kids shortly afterward. Spud had managed to work his way up to being the chief alchemist at the shop, and Stacy's degree in biochemistry-and follow up career as a medical researcher (yes, the head cheerleader apparently managed to score near perfect on her SATs and get a full ride at Hartlin) meant that they could live quite comfortably. They bought a house close to Stacy's parents and quickly filled it with kids. Last time they visited it was five, but I swear it seems like they keep having more kids every time I turn around. From oldest to youngest it's Frank, Alex, Hannah, David, and Lily (David and Lily are twins). Like their father they also have a grasp of magic, although giving two six year olds wands was as terrifying an ordeal as I had thought it would be. When we visited for their birthday David accidentally set the curtains on fire and Lily shrunk the fridge to the size of a matchbox. Thankfully Spud doesn't usually let them do magic at our house due to our neighbors' potential reactions.

As I mentioned, with Spud devising an effective teleportation elixir (that didn't turn you inside out), we usually end up spending most of our weekends together, desperately trying to keep our kids from terrorizing the neighborhood. With John, Wendy, Spud's kids, and Trixie's two girls (on occasion) it gets to be a lot to manage quickly.

Trixie is still in the Air Force, and as a result, can't visit as often as she'd like. However she does drop by at least once a month, making the trip from New Jersey. Trixie had a handful of different boyfriends over the years, with Kyle Wilkins being the longest. However, Kyle and her never really seemed to connect deeply, so when she started in the Air Force they decided to break off their relationship.

During her basic training she met Saul. Saul Johnson was the exact opposite of every other guy she'd dated. He wasn't big or strong jawed, he didn't play sports or go to parties every night. Saul was (and remains to be) seemingly the most predictable and stable person in existence. With the rigid schedule of military life he thrived.

With Trixie in the base's medical center and Saul working all hours repairing the various aircraft there, they didn't get much time together at first. But with some planning (mostly by Saul) they managed to fit in a string of dates that eventually led to a four year engagement and then marriage. Trixie and Saul have two daughters, Sam and Mary (who are roughly the same ages as Frank and Hannah, making them close to John and Wendy also). Saul still doesn't know about the magical world, mainly because any time Trixie tries to tell him he's freaked out and we've had to wipe his memory. Sam and Mary do, though, and while fully human they still are just as chaotic as the rest of the kids when they get together.


	17. Finale

With time the kids have grown up, as all children do. John is 16 and Wendy is 14 now. I'm still technically the American Dragon, but with my kids and Haley's (which I now realize that I forgot to mention… I'll get into that later) there isn't too much that I have to do on my own. Grandpa is still around, but for the most part acts as a guide from the sidelines. I don't think I would want him to go into battle now-he's 95 and I don't think he'd be able to protect himself as well as he used to.

I think this will serve as the end to my notes for now, but I may end up writing more later on.

Jake Long

Author's Note: Hey everyone, thanks for reading, I'm planning on doing some more stories in this same universe, only about Jake's kids. Let me know if you have any ideas or suggestions.


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